Adrienne White and the Whispering Hollow
by RoseSignerAlchemist
Summary: Adrienne White, a former member of Dumbledore's Army, has been uprooted from Britain, planted in America and enrolled in a new wizarding school. However, the terrifying cloud of evil that haunts Europe soon spreads across the Atlantic; and Adrienne, along with her new classmates, must continue the fight against Voldemort on different soil. (Co-written with my friend Cameron.)
1. Prologue

_War was no longer something merely contemplated from a safe distance; no longer something prepared for, just in case; no longer even something anticipated with growing dread._

_ It was here._

_ From the moment the Death Eaters surrounded them in the Department of Mysteries, the first spell loosed on Harry's command, the endless blur of fleeing and the rush of blood and adrenaline that exchanged conscious thought for the need for survival - she had been a soldier._

_ She had come to her senses in the aftermath and realizing the weight of all that was lost._

_ Their leader had lost his godfather._

_ She had lost her father, one of the aurors, one of their saviors - because he had urged her to run, and she had obeyed._

_And they had all lost one thing they could never regain: their peace._

_Evil would always be chasing at their heels._

_And she realized that as long as long as she fought or even as long as she fled, she would _remain_ a soldier._


	2. Whispering Hollow Academy

Adrienne looked skeptically out over the dock as she stood with her mother beside her; both were silent as the cold fog lifted from Lake Champlain. It made her homesick for Hogwarts, seeing the lake in front of her. They were early; they valued punctuality, after all. Soon, a trickle of students came in. All of them looked to be from sixteen to eighteen, near Adrienne's own age. She was slightly relieved; at least she had _something_ in common with the arriving students.

Smiling faces greeted her. Seeing the fathers wishing their children good luck on a new school year brought tears to her eyes, but she didn't cry; she had more pride than to weep. Soon, the Lake Queen arrived and all the students began to board.

"Good luck, sweetheart," Adrienne's mother bid her farewell as she hugged her daughter fiercely. Adrienne returned the embrace, lingering; not afraid to leave, but not quite wanting to go.

"Thanks, Mom," was all she could think to say. "I'll write as soon as I get there."

"You'd better," her mother smiled.

After another, shorter, hug, Adrienne filed into the slow trickle of students and followed them on board.

It was a magnificent ship, to be sure: pearl white, with golden accents and red bunting hanging from the rails, and seeming to be every bit as comfortable as the Hogwarts Express. As the ride was expected to be rather short (it was only half an hour to get to the approximate center of the lake, after all) she opted to stay on deck rather than enjoy the wondrous view spacious rooms below deck. She was enjoying the solitude that was afforded by the deck, and began to become lost in thought, as she started leaning on the railing that separated her from the lake below. She began thinking of England, Hogwarts, her old friends, her old life. Her father. That horrible night at the Ministry…

"Hi! You know, it's really kind of cold and damp out here."

Adrienne turned to see a lovely red-haired girl next to her. She had her hair pulled back into a braided ponytail, and was wearing a dark blue coat, with a skirt and thick purple leggings. Her eyes were bright emerald and looked at Adrienne with suppressed excitement at meeting someone new.

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Adrienne replied a bit sarcastically with a short laugh. "Good morning to you too."

"_Whoa!_ You're English? Are you our new exchange student? The one who fought against Death Eaters? I mean, not that there have been rumors or anything going around. Well, there have been but not bad rumors! Just rumors that you're transferring here, and that you fought against Death Eaters with _Harry freaking Potter_, and that your father was - "

"Kat! Maybe it's best to talk about something else, huh?"

The voice belonged to a boy the same age. He was wearing a worn out brown leather coat, with white fur lining the inside of it. He had brown short hair that matched the color of his coat, under which was an orange collared shirt peeking out of a black sweater. He was wearing black cowboy boots as well. As he cut off the red-haired girl's sentence, he put his hand on her shoulder in a protective manner.

"It's quite alright," Adrienne replied, a bit overwhelmed by the redhead's - Kat's? - incessant blather. "Yes, that's me, although I'm a bit surprised that I have a preceding reputation."

"HA! See, Walt, I told you it was true - "

"But," Adrienne managed to cut her off this time, "your friend is right. I've had enough people ask me about my little adventure with Mr. Potter and friends to last me a lifetime. Perhaps later."

"Of course. Sorry about Kat here. Did she even introduce herself?" He cast a mockingly accusing glance down at the redhead who quickly darted her eyes in the other direction.

"I was getting to that part," she said plaintively. "My name is Katrina Wysocki, from Chicago." After saying her name she abruptly hugged Adrienne, who was both shocked and slightly warmed by the random display of kindness.

"Howdy," the boy said while sticking his hand out to shake Adrienne's. Adrienne almost laughed when he said "howdy"; she had only ever seen the word in books. "My name is Walter Bondurant; I'm from Knoxville, Tennessee." He had a faint Southern accent that only came out in a few words that he spoke. It was enough to make her giggle slightly, which relaxed her.

"Adrienne White," she returned the two greetings in kind. "And since we're including location as well, I'm from York, England. Not that you probably hadn't already guessed that much at least. It's nice to meet you both - it's relieving to know that everyone seems so..." She searched for the right combination of words to describe Katrina's almost immediately displayed affection. "...friendly, here." she finally settled on.

"Yeah. Well, it was nice meeting you, but Kat and I have to go meet with our houses. The upperclassmen are supposed to be at the front of the column and get everyone organized," he explained to Adrienne.

"I'm afraid I haven't been sorted yet," she replied.

"Well, that's alright. You can go with Kat here. She'll show you where to go, but we've got to hurry up and get going because I can see the island now."

"Good idea! C'mon, follow us!"

Adrienne yelped a bit in surprise as Katrina took her by the wrist and began tugging her along with her as she practically skipped ahead to the bow of the ship. Small clusters of students, mainly older, seemed to have anticipated the eventual grouping by house and were already gathered and chatting excitedly. The younger students, who looked to be pre-teens or younger teenagers, had to either be reminded or herded into the three distinct groups that were slowly taking shape. A fourth, the youngest of the students and much smaller than the other three, formed off to the side and was headed by a male professor, obviously older than the oldest of the students but still quite young-looking.

"This is my house," Katrina pointed to the group closest to them, "Carthach! It'd be _awesome_ if you ended up here, we could see each other all the time and - ELENA! Quit flirting with your boyfriend and get in line!"

"He's not my boyfriend!" a girl with very short pale brown hair sporting a dark blue scarf shouted back in protest from near the back of the conflagration.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night! That means you too, Lucas!"

"Aw, come on," the black-haired and darker-skinned boy standing beside Elena called back teasingly, "love waits for no one, Katrina! You should know that better than anyone!" A knowing smirk spread across his face.

A mild blush spread across her face for a moment, but she immediately recovered and snapped back into action. "_Seriously, _Lucas, I don't feel like dealing with you today! Back to your own house, _please!_"

"Okay, okay!" Lucas raised his hands as if in surrender, but his smirk never dropped. He and Elena said goodbye and returned to their respective houses.

Adrienne inquired, "Why exactly should you know that 'love waits for no one'?"

"Don't bother with Lucas. He's always talking and never shuts up, even when what he is saying is nonsense." She looked at Adrienne expectantly before continuing. "Can you imagine talking to someone like that?"

Adrienne wondered if Katrina appreciated the unintended irony of her question, but before she could respond, excited shouts from the younger students drew her attention away from the other girl and toward the rapidly approaching shoreline.

"That was faster than I expected," she commented, as the boat pulled in along the dock. She was herded along with Katrina's house, on her way to what Katrina called the Sanctum. They passed a cozy looking sea shack that was along the beach on their way uphill toward a towering post-Colonial mansion. It was practically the size of Hogwarts Castle itself; she shouldn't have been surprised, but hadn't known what to expect.

"Do I need to go with the first-years once we get inside?" Adrienne asked, dreading the answer, as they made their way down the path leading to the main doors of the mansion. "You know, for the Sorting?"

"Not unless you want to!" Katrina laughed. "Special cases like exchange students are usually sorted first, just to keep everything in order. You can stay with Carthach until you're sorted."

"How does the sorting work here?" Adrienne asked. "Does this school use a sorting hat like Hogwarts does?"

Katrina looked bewildered and suppressed a giggle, "What's a sorting hat?"

"You know, an old pointy black hat that reads your mind when you wear it and puts you in what house it thinks is best for you?"

Katrina could no longer suppress her laughter and giggled a few high pitched notes before continuing.

"Does this hat of your sing songs, too? No, you'll go into a room where the three founders of the school will be waiting for you. They'll decide if they want you or not, depending on what they look for in students. If more than one wants you, then you get to pick!"

"What if none of them want me?" Adrienne asked with an uneasy feeling in her stomach.

"Oh! Yeah, that's happened before, but it's really rare. I wouldn't worry about it, though!"

"Okay...but what if it does happen?"

"Then you have to convince one of them to take you, and if that doesn't work, well, there's always homeschooling!"

"Thanks," Adrienne sighed miserably. "That's _definitely _comforting."

"Oh, no problem!" Katrina replied cheerfully. Adrienne began to draw attention to what she thought was her obvious sarcasm, but quickly decided against it.

At last, the slew of students reached the double doors of the school mansion. The professor at the head of the line of first-years stepped forward and flung them open, then turned about to face the students. "Alright, if everyone could listen to me carefully, please! All first-year students, continue to follow me once we reach the main hall. All returning students, go on and proceed to your house tables - I know you're anxious to see everyone again and get settled in, but no wandering about the hallways, please! Now then, follow me to the inner Sanctuary, and we will begin with breakfast, the Sorting, and the announcements by the Dean!"

Adrienne was a bit mesmerized by the interior of the school building. It certainly was not any less grand than Hogwarts, but was less of an elaborate palace and more of an elegant Victorian mansion, with high ceilings and more angular in its architecture than the winding curves of Hogwarts Castle. Rather than dark stone, chestnut-colored wood made up the majority of the floors and accents of the building. Overall, it reminded Adrienne more of her former home in England than it did her former school. The great hall - Adrienne supposed she'd have to get used to calling it the "inner sanctum", a bit overdramatic for her tastes - seemed to be in roughly the same central location as the same room was in Hogwarts, which relieved her. There was one room that she wouldn't have to go floundering about the unfamiliar building looking for.

Once inside the hall - she was again relieved to find it was nearly the same size and shape as its Hogwarts counterpart, another speck of familiarity in the unknown - she followed Katrina's group to their designated House table, of which there were three, along with a smaller one perpendicular to the others in the back that she deducted was for the first years, pre-sorting. She ended up sitting between Katrina, who wouldn't have let her run off even if she had wanted to, and Elena, who didn't seem to be interested in speaking much. Although the tables had already been laden with various breakfast foods when they had entered the hall, Adrienne found herself unable to eat very much at all.

She was nibbling at a biscuit, or an what Americans called a biscuit, when the Dean stood to deliver the opening announcements. She was a middle aged woman, with dark skin and a stern face and world weary grey eyes to match her hair. As she stood, Katrina whispered to Adrienne, "That's Dean Barba, she runs the school."

She stood with perfect posture at the podium, and welcomed everyone to a new year at Whispering Hollow. The announcements were nothing special, talk of extra curricular activities and any awards that the faculty had received recently. Soon, her mood took a darker turn though.

"As most of you well know, there has been news developing in Europe. Yes, You Know Who has come back. For now, we have nothing to worry about, as it is clear that his targets are in England. However," she said, "we will be vigilant, and make sure that you are all safe in any case of emergency. If you or any of your friends see anything that could be problematic, let me or a member of the faculty know immediately. Now then," her disposition became a little brighter, "it is time for the Sorting of new students, and we have a special exchanged student here to go first! Everyone wish her luck in her interview!"

As Adrienne got up, she could feel all of the eyes in this giant room upon her. The cheering and clapping did little to soothe her, but the "good luck" screamed across the hall by Katrina did make her smile. She was lead to a separate room which was about the size of a spacious closet. Before she was left alone, she was told by an older student, "Don't worry, no one can hear a thing from this room, it's completely private. When you decide on your house, a fire burning in the middle of the Inner Sanctum will flash the color of your new house. Then you come out and have a seat with your new family! Easy as pie."

With that, she was left alone in a dim room completely by herself. Soon however, a voice broke through the darkness.

"Why, hello there, child," came a lilting Irish voice that reminded her of a melody. She looked to where the voice was coming from and on a wall in front of her was a painting. Surrounded by an elaborately carved frame of pale wood was the image of a slender woman; black hair hung over her pale shoulders in waves, and her dark blue eyes almost seemed to glow with the motherly wisdom behind them. She wore an empire-waisted gown almost the same color of her eyes, which gave her image a simple but elegant aura. She was seated at a wooden desk, with countless books, pieces of scrawled-on parchment, drawings, and pieces of sheet music spread across its surface. Next to her painting were two flags in blue and purple with an otter swimming playfully across each.

"My name is Saoirse Carthach, head of Carthach house, but you probably already guessed that, eh, dearie? Hm...to be perfectly blunt, there's not much of me that I see in you though. My house stands for playfulness, creativity, divergent thinking, and the finer things in the world. Are you to be in my house dearie? I'm just not feeling much creativity in you. You're set in your ways, so logical."

_Well, I was in Ravenclaw. She's right,_ Adrienne thought. _That's one down, two to go. _

"Ja, but she does have some fight in her though, doesn't she, Saoirse?" came a booming voice to the left of the first painting. Once illuminated, it showed a man in an orange coat smoking a clay pipe. He spoke with a Dutch accent, and had thick red hair with a Van Dyke beard. On either side of his painting was a black flag with orange highlights with hounds hunting for their prey on them.

"You have grit, and you have seen combat before I see. Oh, how rude of me, I am sorry. My name is Hendrick Hondjaeger. My house stands for grit, determination, justice, honor, fairness, and power. That is what I look for in my students. You are determined alright, but you don't seem to have the power necessary to do what you want, eh? That is okay, power is merely a means, not an end. Hm, I could have use of this one, my friends."

"Please, you would send her to your house that stands as a monument to brutality and simplicity? The girl has a mind! Let her use it!"

The voice came from a tall and intimidating dark skinned man, whose painting hung to the right of Saoirse. He leaned against a bookend table, which contained several gems and a skull. On either side of him hung a banner of snowy white and grey, with silver lynxes ready to pounce on them.

"My name is Callidus Mensah," he said with a royal tone, "and you are clever, and resourceful, all things that I require of my students. If you come to my house, then you will never regret it. We are the greatest minds in this school."

"Yeah, but that's the problem with you lot, Callidus," spoke Hendrick. "You're constantly stepping on the heads of your own kind to get ahead in class or in life. Not with me, Adrienne, not in my house. Once you're part of the pack, you always have a family."

"Please! Just because we do not coddle our underachieving students does not make us heartless. Besides, it is her choice."

"Yes," came the Irish brogue of Saoirse again. "Though I find you interesting, I'm afraid you're just not right for my house. But choose how you will; you will find success with either Hondjaeger or Mensah, I'm sure."

_Well, I won't be in Carthach house. Katrina will be heartbroken,_ thought Adrienne. It didn't take her long to choose, however; Mensah was so close to Ravenclaw, she would feel right at home, surely. When she spoke the name, a bright silver light flashed outside the room. Cheers came up for her as she exited the room, leaving Hondjaeger and Mensah arguing while Carthac tried to broach a peace. She was hugged and greeted with enthusiasm from her new house as she sat with them, each saying what an honor it was to have a girl who had fought side by side with Harry Potter with them. She would do them proud, they said. This was her reputation, then, a do-gooding heroine fighting against evil with the famous Harry Potter?

She wondered how quickly she would let them down.


	3. Everything Is Sorted

"So," Lucas continued his story as he, Adrienne and the rest of the Mensah house continued their trek to their dormitories, "my foot's totally stuck up in there, right? I'm freaking out, the dog's having a seizure and I've still got half a pie left - "

"Not that this isn't fascinating, Lucas," Adrienne interrupted, remembering Katrina's comments about him from earlier, "but isn't common sense one of the core elements of this house?"

"Ah, that's where you're wrong, Adri," Lucas smirked. "Intelligence?Absolutely. _Street_ intelligence? Not necessarily. Apparently Mensah thought I was good enough for him, so here I am!"

Adrienne still couldn't quite believe that the unrestrained, nonsense-spouting boy from before was in the house that most valued intelligence; but then again, some of the most intelligent students back in Ravenclaw had been some of the most eccentric. She had always known that there were different _types_ of intelligence, but accepting and acknowledging that fact was always easier in theory than in practice.

"So," she asked, hoping he wouldn't notice the subject change, "what happens now? Do we just unpack and wait for classes to start tomorrow?"

"As amazing as that would be," Lucas said, "unfortunately not. Mensah still has to determine our house leader for the year." He rolled his eyes. "Not that it even matters. It's usually the same person from when they're picked until they graduate; I'll be _so _glad when that freaking Matthew Shelton graduates so I can go through at least one year without him bossing me around."

"So what then? Your prefects are just chosen at random by somebody?"

"What, oh no, the founders each have a painting in their respective house living quarters, they're there for counsel, advice, even tutoring believe it or not. But they also select the student they believe to be the best representation of their house to be the house leaders."

_Well, that's rather peculiar_, though Adrienne, but she didn't voice her thoughts. As they were led into the common room, she was told that to enter you had to be a member of Mensah house - that was easy enough - and you had to answer a riddle correctly. Adrienne thought that the riddles she heard were easy, so she wasn't worried.

She was told by a boy that Lucas pointed out to be Matthew Shelton that her luggage had already been delivered to her room, and that they were all supposed to stay in the common room where on a blank wall hung an exact copy of the painting of Mensah that she had spoken to when she was sorted. He welcomed them all back. Then went on an impromptu speech about how Hendrick had told him that there was no way for them to win at Quidditch this year, and that he expected our team to work hard to wipe the grin off of his face from last year's championship. After he was done, almost as an afterthought, he said, "Oh, and I almost forgot - the house leader for the year. Where is Matthew Shelton?"

The boy that she had seen earlier stepped up with a wide grin on his face.

"Well, Shelton, thank you for your prior two years of service, but you won't be needed anymore...because the new House leader is Adrienne White!"

"Aw, YEAH!" Lucas cried, holding up a hand to Adrienne for a high-five. "I don't know _how_ you managed that, but it was _amazing._"

Almost numbly, she returned Lucas's gesture, still trying to process the situation. She had been in the country for exactly one day, had literally met the founder half an hour ago, and now he thought she was going to be the best representative for the entire house?

Matthew Shelton stood there numb, with a stupid look on his face, not daring to move. It was his only defense against reality at the moment.

The painting of Mensah looked up at her, almost as if he was disappointed.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go meet with the other House leaders!"

Still shocked, she could barely squeeze out a faint, "Where?"

The painting of Mensah sighed and said with exasperation, "Just go to the library and they'll meet you there."

"Alright...where's the library, then?"


	4. A New Home

The library was in the second-story west wing of the school mansion; although Adrienne couldn't see it living up to the grandeur of Hogwarts' treasure trove of knowledge in her eyes, she wasn't particularly disappointed by the array of books immediately visible upon entering the large room.

The next sight in her immediate line of vision was a bit more surprising: Katrina and Walt sitting at one of the study tables along the left side of the room, chatting quietly as to not disturb what few other students there were.

_The founder said that the other house leaders would be waiting for me here...does that mean…?!_

"Oh, it's you. What's up?" Walt was the first to notice her presence, and nodded in recognition. Katrina, on the other hand, nearly squealed.

"Hi again, Adrienne!" she cried. "Did you get settled into your dorm alright? How do you like your housemates? What brings you to the library when classes haven't even started yet - and why are you still just standing there? Oh, and have you seen a tall blonde guy named Matthew around? He's in your house - he's supposed to be meeting us here for the house leaders' meeting so we can figure out important things to know for the year and - "

"So," Adrienne cut her off, making her way over to prop against their table, but not sit, "you guys are the other two house leaders?"

"That's right," Walt nodded. "Both of our third years in the position and counting. We would've mentioned it earlier, but technically the decision wasn't final."

"Because," Adrienne continued. "I'm sort of the leader of _my _house now."

The almost stunned silence that followed only served to reassure her that the situation was still going downhill. This was why she was so surprised by the amused smile that broke across Walt's face.

"Well," he chuckled, "this is certainly new!"

"_Merlin's beard!_" Katrina squeaked out, in much the same way a muggle would excitedly scream _oh my god!_ Adrienne yelped as the witch leapt from her seat and hugged her so hard she was practically lifted from the ground. "Congratulations! This hasn't happened in _forever_, you know, normally the founders stay with who they picked as fourth-years until they graduate and I don't think an exchange student has _ever _gotten picked! I'm so happy you were chosen, though, Matthew was kind of a prick anyway, now us three can all tackle whatever we need to this year together and it's going to be _amazing_!"

"Okay, Kat," Walt interjected, "I know we're all really happy about this, but maybe we should get down to business sometime before tomorrow."

The ginger giggled sheepishly as she set the blonde down. "Right! Sorry."

Even as Adrienne subconsciously grounded herself and prepared her mind to process new information that would be crucial for the coming year, the surreal feeling of the situation never quite left her. They all settled back at their corner table, where the other two house leaders explained to Adrienne the implications and duties of her new position. Although it was quite a bit to process after having been unexpected in the first place, she managed to gather the basics. Essentially, she was what the Head Girl or a Prefect would have been back at Hogwarts, only with slightly different duties.

"We don't so much _run_ the house," Walt explained, "as represent it. Sort of like a class president at a muggle high school. Students in our houses come to us with their concerns, and we make sure that important student matters are brought to the administration's attention. We don't have much authority over the students themselves, like the - what were they called, prefects? - at your old school do."

"To sum up our role in one phrase: 'be aware,'" Katrina explained, now considerably more calm. "Just make sure you're staying in touch with what's happening concerning the students in your house and the higher-ups of the faculty and you should be fine! We're involved in some event organization and things like that, but it's nothing too terrible."

"So, basically, just make sure I know what's happening and stay involved?"

Walt nodded. "You've got it."

"Oh! This comes with the territory of staying involved," Katrina added. "You'll probably be expected to get involved in some school organization. Like, I'm a soprano in the choir, and Walt's the captain of his house's dueling team. It's an easy way to show the students and faculty that you're involved and interested in what's going on at the school."

While Adrienne _had_ admittedly been curious as to what extracurricular activities her new school offered, joining one combined with her leadership position (all in addition to adjusting to the school itself) now seemed like just another burden. Rather than voicing this, she said, "I'm sure I'll think of something."

"You look worried there; don't go panicking over this. It's an honor, really; professors give you preferential treatment and everything," Katrina said, observing the deep lines that had furrowed into Adrienne's forehead.

"Besides," Walt grunted as he got up. He walked over toward a library shelf that had dozens of books on it, but no organization to them. "You learn things as house leader that you might not have learned otherwise," he said with a grin. He took out his wand and tapped several books at what seemed like random; yet soon the book case bent and reshaped itself with ease, forming stairs to a trapdoor on the ceiling of the library.

The three of them ascended the stairs, Adrienne bringing up the rear. When she pulled herself up, she found a spacious square room of about 900 square feet. It was furnished with a simple table, three chairs, lanterns for light, and a large bed; there were also what looked like burn marks on the two of the walls. The rest were covered by various paintings: some of two wizards dueling, of brooms flying, and various other subjects.

"Sorry for the mess! Walt used to like to try and make up new spells up here."

"Yeah...turns out trying to mix _confrigo _with _stupefy_ to create a blinding explosion doesn't work out too well," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"His eyebrows just grew back!" Katrina whispered to Adrienne, who had to laugh a little at the idea.

"_Anyway,_" Walt said clearly trying to change the subject, "this is a place where we come and meet, discuss what's going on 'round here, and try and escape from school for a little bit." As he spoke he took off his brown leather overcoat and hung it on the chair in the middle. "It's good to get away from it all sometimes."

"So why is there a bed then?" Adrienne asked with her right eyebrow cocked.

"Oh, it's not what it looks like!" said Katrina, the words tumbling out of her mouth like a waterfall. "It's just that sometimes we're here really late and I'll be helping Walt with his Runes or Divination homework, or he'll help me with Defense Against the Dark Arts or maybe Charms and we'll be here really late, and it's kind of weird because obviously it's school so you know how people are when Walt and I are missing at nights, but Walt always lets me use the bed, he just sleeps on the floor. Oh, that probably makes me sound terrible for making him use the floor, but he never takes the bed when I offer it to him, not that I'm offering to take him to bed or anything. It's just people talk, you know?"

"The point is," Walt said chuckling, "this is our own personal fortress. Sometimes we stay here so late after classes and clubs that we just sleep here."

"Well, it is kind of cozy, isn't it?" Adrienne said approvingly.

"Yeah, well," Walt said as he lit the fireplace, "it's better when its warm; here, cozy up next to the fire."

He pulled the three chairs up to the fireplace, but kept his closer to the open window where a chilly Autumn breeze was blowing off the lake as Katrina and Adrienne warmed themselves by the fire. They soon found themselves chatting about the differences between here and England, and the differences in Quidditch here and there, about what classes she was taking and what she wanted to do. They had talked for hours, and soon Katrina had literally flopped onto the bed and was soon fast asleep. Walt got up from his chair near the window just long enough to cover her with a blanket before sitting down again. He pulled out a half-churchwarden meerschaum pipe with snowflakes carved into the bowl of the pipe.

"This doesn't bother you, does it? I can't do it while Kat's awake; she yells at me."

"No, it's fine, my father used to smoke a pipe."

As he lit it, the fire from his wand illuminated his face for a brief second. He was soon puffing on it; a comfortable silence filled the room. Adrienne was almost asleep in her chair when Walt asked,

"He was an Auror, wasn't he?"

"Yes."

"I read his obituary. He was a great man. I've always believed our fathers impact us in ways we never really comprehend, sometimes even more than our mothers. He would have been proud of you, becoming your house leader."

All Adrienne could think to say was thank you, before crawling into bed next to Katrina. She began shivering since the window was still open. Before she could get up, Walt had moved the blanket to cover Adrienne too. Even with the blanket, Adrienne thought it was still a little chilly.

"Before I fall asleep," she mumbled as her eyes closed, "do you want me to stoke the fire or something so you'll stay warm?" It was a stupid question, she knew; she was already half-asleep. However, they had been so kind and open to her, she felt she had to offer something.

Walt just chuckled and the puffed on his pipe once more.  
"Nah, nah, that's fine. You go on to sleep. The cold never bothered me."

* * *

Elena frowned as she studied the three cards laid out before her on the grass. "This doesn't look good..."

"Aw, come on, 'Lena, you're overthinking this," Lucas laughed. "A few playing cards aren't going to foretell the next year accurately; surely you acknowledge that!"

"Lucas, _anything_ can foretell accurately if you know how to interpret it and don't let your own expectations get in the way," Elena responded calmly, trying to keep her frustration from showing on her face.

"Well, then," the dark-haired boy acquiesced, jumping down from the tree branch he had been seated on to drop beside his friend. "What sorts of doom and gloom are you seeing, then?"

She pointed to each card in succession as she answered. "The Magician reversed, The Tower, and the Hanged Man reversed. Normally, these cards have positive connotations in some sense, but all together and with these two in particular being reversed..."

"Don't tell me, you're predicting the death of a student again?"

Elena sighed. "That was literally _one_ time - and no one died!"

"I was just messing with you," Lucas chuckled, his smile part teasing and part fond. "Your buttons are so easy to push!"

"_Anyway - _" The girl turned back to her cards, though she returned the smile. " - the Magician reversed can mean manipulation, deceit - someone using their skills for negative ends. The Tower upright has always denoted a disaster or upheaval of some kind...I think it's safe to say that whoever the Magician represents in this is going to be responsible for whatever disaster the Tower is predicting."

"Sounds cheery so far. And what about the last one?"

Elena fiddled with a strand of her short hair as if she were uncomfortable. "The reversed Hanged Man means martyrdom. Meaningless sacrifice. Of course, this could be taken in different contexts, but - "

"See?" Lucas laughed. "I _knew_ you were going to predict another death eventually!"

"Oh, shut up!" She sighed, stacking the cards before her and replacing them in the tarot deck lying off to the side. "I'm trying to be serious here, Lucas...this could actually mean something _bad_ is going to happen this year! Then again, I shouldn't be surprised. Do you even believe in anything?"

"I believe in you."

Elena's immediate reaction was to interpret his words as a jest, but there was a strange sort of sincerity to his tone that made it impossible. "Be serious!" she said, turning away slightly to put away her cards.

"_Serious_, 'Lena? We both know that 'serious' is what I do worst."


End file.
